Politics & Government

Purple Heart Ceremony for Injured Soldier in Palo Alto

Sgt. Brian Jergens, 23, recently returned from serving in Afghanistan, where he suffered serious injuries in a humvee accident. He was awarded a Purple Heart on Tuesday at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Palo Alto.

An army soldier severely injured in Afghanistan this summer was presented with the Purple Heart on Tuesday at the in Palo Alto, where he has been undergoing rehab since September.

The ceremony for Sgt. Brian Jergens, 23, was held in front of his family and close friends. His commander, Capt. Scott Weeman, presented him with the award. Also in attendance was his comrade Sgt. Ben Stehman, as well as members of the Northern California Patriot Guard Riders and Blue Star Moms.

"It was a really nice ceremony," his wife, Jennifer Jergens, said today. "It was last-minute but it worked out really well."

Find out what's happening in Palo Altowith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Jergens was injured when a humvee he was driving hit a roadside bomb on Aug. 7. Stehman, who was riding in the humvee, suffered broken legs. But Jergens, who lost both legs and suffered severe traumatic brain injury, bore the brunt of the attack.

The incident happened eight months after Jergens was deployed to Afghanistan. Prior to that, he was stationed at Fort Riley in Kansas, where he lived with his wife of one year. Jennifer Jergens, a 19-year-old native of Santa Clara and student at De Anza College in Cupertino, now takes care of her husband. The couple does not have children.

Find out what's happening in Palo Altowith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"I'm mostly just really proud of Brian," she said. "He's been improving constantly. He's really just beaten all the odds."

She said they are planning to leave the VA Medical Center to go to another rehab facility in California in about a month.

- Bay City News Service


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here